THE MOTOR cruiser involved in a fishing tragedy which claimed the lives of three friends off the West Cork coast may be so badly damaged that it may not be possible for marine investigators to salvage it.
According to sources, experts from the Marine Casualty Investigation Board are waiting to carry out a dive to assess the damage to the 25-footCastaway, but believe the fibreglass boat may be damaged beyond recovery.
The heat from the fire may have been so intense, according to one source, that much of the cabin area and superstructure of the boat may have melted and burned away before it sank in 48m of water, 2.8 miles off Roancarrig Lighthouse in Bantry Bay.
Three friends – the boat’s owner Wolfgang “Mike” Schmidt (70), Furkeal, Glengarriff; Richard Harman (69), Glengarriff village, and Wolfgang Schröder (62), Dromleigh South, Bantry – died in the tragedy on Monday.
It has emerged that it was the lone survivor, American Eddy Dziato (46), of Glengarriff, who raised the alarm, with his mobile phone, after electrical wiring caught fire. Mr Dziato told rescuers the fire spread along the fibreglass boat in minutes, with the heat becoming so intense that he and his friends were forced to take to the water.
It’s understood that Mr Dziato reckons all four were in the water for just minutes when picked up by the Irish Coastguard helicopter which came from nearby Castletownbere, where it was on standby for a mountain rescue mission.
All were winched up by the crew of the helicopter, piloted by Lt Dara Fitzpatrick, but Mr Harman, Mr Schmidt and Mr Schröder had died. Mr Dziato, suffering from shock, was taken to Bantry General Hospital.
The removal of Mr Harman will take place at 7pm tonight from Coakley’s Funeral Home in Bantry to St Brendan’s Church of Ireland in the town, and he will be buried at Adrigole Old Cemetery after a funeral service at 2pm tomorrow.
Details were revealed yesterday of the funeral arrangements for Mr Schröder and Mr Schmidt.
Mr Schröder’s remains will lie in repose at Coakley’s Funeral Home in Bantry between 7pm and 8pm on Saturday before being removed to the Sacred Heart Church in Glengarriff where he will lie in repose with Mr Schmidt between 5pm and 7pm on Sunday.
The two northern Germans, who worked at sea and were close friends, will share a joint funeral at the Sacred Heart Church in Glengarriff at noon on Monday, followed by private cremations.
It has been confirmed that another man lost his life in a separate incident in West Cork on Monday after slipping on rocks while fishing near his home, near Ardfield outside Clonakilty.
Noel Daly had gone fishing after coming home from work on Monday. A passer-by found his body in the water after 7pm.
Supt Pat Maher of Clonakilty Garda station said it was misty at the time. Mr Daly is survived by his wife, Monica, and daughter Ann Marie.
